Columbus one of 20 finalist cities for Amazon’s $5B HQ2

The only city in Ohio to make it through the first cut for Amazon’s $5-billion second headquarters is Columbus, reports Columbus Business First. “Unlike cities that offered plots of land, Columbus offered incentives to recoup partial land acquisition costs in the bid prepared by economic development groups Columbus 2020 and JobsOhio,” according to the article. Among those incentives are a “tax abatement on sites where Amazon opts to invest” and “a cash payment based on a portion of income tax withholding for new jobs.” Columbus also “pledged a dedicated transit and roadwork fund, also funded by reserving Amazon employee withholding tax,” according to Columbus Business First. Out of 238 proposals, Amazon selected 20 finalists; Columbus will compete with New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and others, The Columbus Dispatch reports. For more, read the full Columbus Business First and Columbus Dispatch articles.